The Palestinian electricity distribution company in the Gaza Strip has said that the Israeli authorities are refusing to allow the repair of the main power line feeding the enclave. In a press statement, a copy of which was received by Anadolu on Monday evening, the company explained that one of the Israeli power lines feeding the Gaza Strip has been disabled since last Thursday. The Israeli army refuses to allow engineers to repair it. The company pointed out that the power line in question normally feeds Gaza with about 12 megawatts of electricity. The fact that it is broken exacerbates the electricity crisis from which the Palestinians in Gaza are suffering. It warned that the continued disruption of power will affect the supply to vital facilities such as hospitals and public services. The Gaza Strip needs about 400 megawatts of electricity every 24 hours. At the moment, only 212 megawatts are available, of which Israel provides 120; Egypt provides 32 megawatts, and 60 are provided by the power plant in Gaza. For the past eight years, the Gaza Strip has been suffering from a major electricity crisis ever since Israel bombed the territory's only power plant in mid-2006. This has forced the population to live with a daily schedule that includes at least eight hours of power cuts.

Palestinians of al-Jab’a village, in northern al-Khalil province, launched, on Tuesday, distress signals over the water crisis rocking the village since April due to Israel’s exploitation and mishandling of water resources.

Head of the Jab’a village council, No’man Hamdan, told a PIC journalist that the Ja’ba natives have been living in dire conditions due to Israel’s near total control over the distribution of water in the area and its refusal to distribute any water to the village for over a month’s time, leaving Palestinians with no alternative ways by which to obtain this vital resource.

He further raised alarm bells over difficulties in movement in and out of the village due to the roadblock put in place across the only passageway leading into the village by the Israeli occupation army since 2000. As such, it is impossible for vehicles of any kind to enter al-Jab’a; anyone seeking access to the village must do so on foot. Likewise, resources and furniture can only be transported into the village by having them carried on foot across the roadblock.

Al-Jab’a is a small village situated in central West Bank not far from the 1948 Green Line and is home to over 800 Palestinians. As the village is surrounded by multiple illegal Israeli settlements in the vicinity of Gush Etzion, the Palestinians of Al Jab’a must contend with an alarming amount of discrimination. This includes the confiscation of their land by the Israeli government, the destruction of their olive trees at the hands of Jewish settlers and more. Indeed, Israel’s policies towards the residents of Al Jaba are structured in such a way so as to force these Palestinians to give up and leave their homes and the surrounding area, the Palestine Solidarity project said online.

The situation has been no less tense in al-Khalil’s al-Seir neighborhood as a flock of Israeli army jeeps rolled into the area and stationed near al-Khalil’s feminist association.

The Palestinian Authority jeeps meanwhile suddenly backtracked from the area, paying no attention to the assault.

The Israeli occupation forces also notified the demolition of a family home under construction in al-Khalil’s western town of Idna under the pretext of unlicensed construction.

The Israeli occupation reportedly stepped up arbitrary demolition procedures and notifications in the southern West Bank province of al-Khalil in an attempt to crack down on the natives and force them out of their own and only homes.

Airports Authority fires 5 employees after internal investigation finds they stole tobacco from Palestinians going through security at the border crossing; Authority criticized for not filing police complaint.Five Israel Airports Authority security employees were caught stealing from Palestinians who were entering Israel from Jordan through the Allenby Bridge border crossing, Ynet learned on Tuesday.They were fired following an internal investigation, but the Authority did not file a complaint with the police against them. "The Authority decided to take the law into its own hands," one of the crossing's employees said. The Israel Airports Authority launched an internal investigation in February following complaints on theft from Palestinians who underwent security checks at the crossing. The five employees admitted that they stole from Palestinians going through the border crossing over a long period of time, saying they took tobacco and other personal items. The theft occurred while the Palestinians placed their luggage at the baggage screening machine. Despite the severity of the security employees' actions, the Israel Airports Authority did not turn to the police, nor did it file complaints against them.

"This is not the first time the Airports Authority fails to pass criminal cases to the police's handling and instead chooses to take the law into its own hands," a source at the border crossing said. "In such a case, when such serious harm was caused to the Palestinians, the police must be involved. I guess since these are Palestinians, the Authority did not consider this very grave."

The Allenby Bridge border crossing is the most southern crossing on the Jordan River and serves the Palestinian population and tourists, as Israelis are not allowed to go through the crossing. In addition, goods going between Israel, the Palestinian Authority and Jordan also go through the border crossing.

The Israel Airports Authority said in response that "a probe done by the Airports Authority found that five employees of a private contractor took tobacco from the travelers' bags. The Authority conducted a comprehensive examination with the employees, and their employment was terminated after it was discovered they took tobacco during security checks of the travelers' luggage and took it out of the terminal for their private use."

The Authority said it views the case gravely, "and is initiating action to prevent such phenomena, and does not show leniency on ethical issues."

The Arab League has warned from the collapse of the educational process in Palestine due to the Israeli occupation discriminatory policies and the Palestinian and Arab identity obliteration.In his speech Sunday during the the opening session of the 72nd course for the council of the educational affairs, Assistant Secretary General of Palestine Affairs in the Arab League, Mohammad Sbeih confirmed the necessity of Arab support to the educational process for Palestinian students, and the strong steadfast against the Israeli occupation attempts to strip them from education, which can produce a generation that is able to challenge the occupation and establish a Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital.Sbeih also warned that Israel was continually targeting the educational procedure in Jerusalem through imposing the Israeli curriculum on East Jerusalem educational institutes, to completely demolish the Arab identity and Judaize Jerusalem.Occupation is also preventing the establishment of any new schools in East Jerusalem or renovating the old ones, which lead to lack of about 1000 classrooms, in addition to using ineligible rooms for classes, such as narrow corridors, caravans and Zinc rooms crowded and narrow. The expensiveness of private schools also lead to the increase of students dropping out at an early age."Israel, the occupying Power, on May 15 celebrated its sixty-seventh anniversary of occupying Palestinian land, and destroying all sides of Palestinian daily life including economic, social, health, cultural, and mostly; educational, since the occupation is aware of its importance in nation-structure and its effect on the strength of a nation," Sbeih said.He continued, "Israel is using every possible way to restrict the movement of Palestinian student in the West Bank and Jerusalem, and fight against having an academically educated Palestinian youth by preventing them from heading to universities."Sbeih assured that Israeli forces in their consecutive attacks on Gaza always targeted educational institutes and hindered the reconstruction process. They also blocked the school textbooks from being entered to the strip and prevented Gazans from reaching West Bank universities, scattering the Palestinian curriculum.The conference on the educational process in Palestine will be held for six days in Cairo starting Sunday. It discusses the Israeli occupation impact on it and the policies used against it in Jerusalem and all over occupied Palestine.Participators include delegations from Jordan, Palestine, Egypt, Lebanon, The Arab Organizations for Education, Culture and Science, Association of Arab Universities, Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization and the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees 'UNRWA'.

The Palestinian national and Islamic factions in the blockaded Gaza Strip asked the Egyptian authorities to open Rafah border crossing permanently and regularly in both directions.

The factions said, in a statement on Monday, the humanitarian conditions in the costal enclave have reached a tragic situation especially for the patients, students and foreign passport holders.

The factions expressed their trust that the Egyptian authorities would respond positively to alleviate the suffering of the Palestinian people. They called on Egypt to open the crossing in both directions, instead of one direction as it was announced, in the coming couple of days.

The Palestinian factions also appealed to the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to intervene in order to urge Egypt to open Rafah crossing in two directions.

They also charged the Israeli authorities with responsibility over the continuation of the siege on Gaza which has been imposed for eight years.

The statement pointed out that the Palestinian factions care about the safety and stability of Egypt and referred to the Palestinian consensus on the importance of the Egyptian regional role in leading the Islamic and Arab nation including supporting the Palestinian Question.

It was decided that Egypt will open Rafah crossing next Tuesday and Wednesday in one direction only for the return of the people stranded in Egypt. This came after closing the crossing for three months showing total disregard dor the needs of thousands of people to travel.

The Egyptian authorities have been closing Rafah crossing since October, 2013. It was partially opened for few days for the travel of few sick people, students and the humanitarian cases.

One hundred thousands of Palestinians mostly patients and students, however, are waiting for the opening of Rafah crossing in order to be able to travel.

Israel closed the Gaza Strip's only functioning commercial crossing (Kerem Shalom), on Sunday, for the Jewish holiday "Feast of Weeks", a Palestinian official said.

"The Israeli closure would disrupt trade traffic in the strip and negatively affect the flow of fuel into the enclave," Mounir al-Ghalban of Gaza's border authority said, according to World Bulletin/Al Ray.

Blockaded by Israel – by air, land and sea – since 2007, the Gaza Strip has seven border crossings linking it to the outside world.

Six of these are controlled by Israel, while a seventh – the Rafah crossing – is controlled by Egypt, which keeps it tightly sealed for the most part.

Israel sealed four of its commercial crossings with Gaza in June 2007 after Hamas wrested control of the strip from the West Bank-based Palestinian Authority.

The Kerem Shalom crossing is dedicated to commercial use, while the Erez crossing is generally used for the movement of individuals between the blockaded Gaza Strip and the occupied West Bank.

Director General of Gaza border and crossings Maher Abu Sabha revealed that the Egyptian authorities intend to open Rafah border crossing in one way direction for the return of the stranded people in Egypt into Gaza Strip.

In an exclusive talk with the PIC, Abu Sabha disclosed that the crossing will be open on Tuesday and Wednesday on May 26 and 27. He expressed his disappointment for the partial opening after the very long suffering.

Regarding future two-way direction opening, Abu Sabha said the order of opening Rafah crossing was made by the Palestinian Embassy in Cairo to get rid of its responsibility in front of the stranded Palestinians in Egypt.

He also expressed his sorrow that the embassy did not pay efforts for opening it in both ways.

Rafah border crossing has been closed for 138 days and was exceptionally opened for only 5 days. In 2014, it was closed for 241 days.

The Israeli occupation army on Saturday informed the Palestinian Authority liaison office that it would close on Sunday Jalama crossing, north of Jenin city, at the pretext of celebrating Jewish holidays.

Local sources in Jenin said that the Israeli measure would prevent thousands of workmen and business owners from entering the 1948 occupied lands.

They added that the closure of the crossing would cause a recession in the markets of Jenin.

Israel usually uses Jewish holidays as a reason to tighten its security measure in the West Bank, which leads to considerable economic suffering for the Palestinians.

The spokesman of Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza Ashraf al-Qudrah disclosed that the closure of Rafah border crossing prevents 12,000 sick Palestinians from traveling abroad for treatment.

Qudrah warned of the deterioration of the health conditions of the patient which may lead to the death of some critical cases.

In an exclusive statement for the PIC, Qudrah said that 18,000 of the sick people in Gaza were traveling annually via Rafah crossing for treatment in Egypt and other Arab countries.

Only 2400 of the sick people have so far been able to travel, Qudrah underlined.

Rafah crossing has been closed for 135 days since the beginning of the year while it was opened partially for 5 days only. Last year, it was closed for 241 days as the Egyptian authorities have been closing Rafah crossing since June 2013 when they ousted the former Egyptian President Mohammad Mursi.

Qudrah appealed to the Egyptian authorities to open Rafah crossing in order to save the lives of sick people. Especially, amid the policy of blackmail and security bans used by Israel against the patients who are referred to hospitals in the West Bank, Occupied Jerusalem and 1948 Occupied Palestine.

He said dozens of the sick Gazans died due to siege and closure of crossings in light of the lack of required treatment and ban of travel. The latest case was the case of martyr Mohammad Madi.

"The dangerous consequences of the closure are not confined to ban of travel as it stops the entry of large quantities of medications estimated at 30% of the drugs needed by Gaza people," he added.

It also deprives the patients from the services offered by solidarity medical delegations that were performing critical surgeries. Besides, the closure also stopped the relief convoys including medical cadres, equipment, and health kits which were contributing to support the blockaded enclave which has been suffering for eight years.

The Israeli occupation forces (IOF) have sealed off the main entrances to southern Nablus, in the northern West Bank, on accounts of providing a tight security shield for Israeli settlers.

Member of the Madama village council Bahjat Ziada said the IOF have since Wednesday afternoon been blocking Palestinians access out of and into Nablus’ villages of Madama and Burin. A military checkpoint was pitched by the IOF at the main entrance to the villages allegedly to provide security for Israeli settlers passing through the area.

The IOF have also reportedly been closing the Hawara checkpoint for varying periods of time after hordes of Israeli fanatics joined marches staged in illegal settlement outposts in southern Nablus.

A few hours earlier, the Israeli occupation troops rolled into Nablus’ Burin and set up a makeshift roadblock at its crossroads, denying Palestinians entry into and exit from the area.

Dozens of Israeli extremist settlers also partook in a march on the Yitzhar bypass under the pretext that Molotov Cocktails were hurled at settler cars.

Meanwhile, eye-witnesses said a bench of Israeli vandals set up a tent and a makeshift caravan on a hill in Burin, raising concerns over Israeli intents to set the stage for the establishment of an illegal settlement outpost at the expense of Palestinians’ own and only lands.

Overnight Wednesday the IOF pitched a flying checkpoint at the entrance to Deir Sharaf village, west of Nablus, where Palestinian vehicles and passers-by were meticulously inspected, resulting in traffic congestion.

From new roads to increased work permits, the IDF is trying a new approach in an effort to preserve the delicate security situation in the West Bank.The term "apartheid" resurfaced in Israel on Wednesday as critics lashed out at a very short-lived plan to segregate Israelis and Palestinians on public transport in the West Bank. After several hours of fierce criticism from across the political spectrum, Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu decided to suspend the plan.Meanwhile on the ground, efforts are being made to calm the situation. Officials in the Judea and Samaria Division and the Civil Administration are currently promoting a series of measures to ease Palestinian movement on the roads of the West Bank, as part of Central Command policy to create a gulf between terrorist organizations and the Palestinian population, and maintain the delicate security situation in the territories.The Judea and Samaria Division are working to improve access for Palestinian vehicles in a series of locations across the West Bank. For example, a new access road was recently opened for the village of Beitin, near the Beit El settlement, and, an intersection between the town of Tulkarem and the Avnei Hefetz settlement was opened to Palestinian traffic. At the same time, the IDF is also working to renovate the northern entrance to the town of Bani Na'im near Hebron, which had been closed for security reasons. The army is also accelerating efforts to build a new access road to Kafr Qaddum. The road to the village was closed several years ago after it was deemed too close to the settlement of Kedumim, a move that forced the villagers to make a detour of more than a half hour's drive to get to Nablus. The closure of the road also led to violent Friday demonstrations against the security forces. "We are making this the focus and we have already been doing so five or six years," a senior officer in the Samaria region told Ynet. "The objective is to build a safe new route with illumination."Most Palestinians in the West Bank have full freedom of movement, and most checks are for Palestinians traveling from Judea - Bethlehem and Hebron – northwards via East Jerusalem to the Ramallah area, and vice versa. Palestinians are currently allowed to travel freely with their vehicles on the main roads used by Jewish travelers, such as Route 60 and Route 35. Additionally, residents of Jenin are not prevented from taking their own cars to nearby Afula if they choose to visit relatives in the town of Dahariya, north of Beersheba. Palestinian builders working for IDF These measures come in addition to a series of steps by the IDF Central Command and the Judea and Samaria Division to preserve the security situation, even at an unusual price for the IDF's West Bank bases. It is not out of the ordinary these days to see Palestinian workers from Ramallah renovating the Judea and Samaria Division headquarters. At the same time, the Judea Brigade Commander, Colonel Yariv Ben-Ezra, promotes the issue of expanding the industrial area south of Hebron to the northern part of the nearby town of Yatta. Along with these steps comes the IDF recommendation to the political echelons to stop freezing of the transfer of Palestinian tax money, a step that is causing a wages crisis in the Palestinian Authority. The recommendation was eventually accepted, along with dozens of cases of the IDF allowing Palestinian police cars to travel on the roads of the West Bank alongside Jewish vehicles. A senior officer in the Judea and Samaria Division tells Ynet that 700-800 truckloads of goods pass daily through the Tarqumia crossing, and more than 13,000 work permits and 4,000 trade permits have been granted to Hebron residents so that they can earn a living in Israel. "In a city like Hebron (the biggest Palestinian city in the West Bank – YZ), the economy is booming," says the officer. However, the officer makes it clear that Hamas is still trying to establish a cell set up and infrastructure in Judea and Samaria. "We will continuously fight terrorist activity; we will disrupt it and take all measures to prevent a conflagration. There are many measures to ease life for the Palestinians. Every commercial or construction project that you initiate, along with increasing construction in Area C, pushes the Palestinians for the better. Easing life for the Palestinian population produces peace and security in a clear way. We can see that over the years, so does reducing the age of Palestinians working in Israel without a permit, from 60 to 55."